Inside Politics: Perrin moves to state Dormitory Authority

Updated 9:45 am, Friday, August 31, 2012

Michael Perrin, Deputy Albany County Executive addresses the gathering during a hearing in Albany, N.Y. put on by the Committee on Establishment and Project Review on the fate of the Albany County Nursing Home April 5, 2012. (Skip Dickstein/Times Union)

Former Deputy Albany County Executive Michael Perrin has landed a new job.

Perrin, a longtime aide to former County Executive Michael Breslin, started Thursday as director of construction administration for the state Dormitory Authority assigned to Gov. Andrew Cuomo's New York Works Task Force.

Perrin's responsibilities in the $116,000-a-year post will include working as liaison between the Dormitory Authority and the departments of Environmental Conservation and Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation, said authority spokesmanBeau Duffy

Perrin, a top Breslin aide since 1997, had been on his way out for some time after spending six months aiding new County Executive Dan McCoy with his transition. In July, McCoy named Christine Quinn as his deputy.

While Perrin's resignation from the county was effective Aug. 24, he was tying up some loose ends at the county office building on State Street on Wednesday, the same day the County Legislature's Personnel Committee approved McCoy's picks to replace Perrin and another member of the Albany Convention Center Authority.

McCoy also nominated Steven Lerner, director of real estate for the Western Avenue-based real estate firm Vanguard-Fine LLC, to replace board member Kai Earle, who works for the SUNY Construction Fund but, according to McCoy's office, had scheduling conflicts that made it difficult for her to attend the authority's monthly meetings.

McCoy has said little publicly about his feelings on the $220 million proposed downtown convention center, the fate of which seems uncertain at best.

Cuomo himself has sent mixed messages about it and, to date, has left two of the three seats that he can fill on the board vacant.

Dazed and confused

Confusion partially derailed a candidate forum Wednesday for 46th Senate District, which eventually went off without one of the Democratic hopefuls and with a Republican as the moderator.

Mark Grimm, a former Republican Guilderland Town Board member, filled in as moderator.

"I think we did great despite a lot of confusion," said Miranda, president and CEO of the Hispanic Coalition NY, Inc. "I think it shows that there are candidates willing to engage the voters in conversation."

Dolan, a Coeymans Town Board member, said he had heard the forum might be canceled but decided to show up because he had worn his suit to work and posted on Facebook that he would be there.

The original moderator — Steve Pampinella, executive editor of the online news site Knickerbocker Ledger — said he stepped away after learning at least one of the candidates had concerns about taking part in the forum.

"It was her choice to participate or not, and I'm not looking to make any political hay out of it," said Dolan, who used the opportunity to voice his opposition to hydrofracking.

On Thursday, Tkaczyk's campaign manager, Laura Castelli, said her boss let Miranda know weeks ago that she "had a prior scheduling conflict." Tkaczyk also wanted a third party to moderate the gathering, Castelli said.

"Nobody suggested Monica cancel her event," Castelli said. "Cecilia is very interested in talking with voters in a forum that would have been conducted by a third party."

The buzz grows louder

Not to get ahead of ourselves, what with this year's primaries not even decided, but the buzz about next year's city elections isn't limited to whether Treasurer Kathy Sheehan or Corey Ellis or both will make a run at the mayor's office.

At this week's first public input meeting of the city's redistricting commission, former 5th Ward Leader Johnsie Ingram confidently declared that she plans to run for Common Council to represent West Hill — whether or not incumbent Jackie Jenkins-Cox decides to seek re-election to a second term.

Jenkins-Cox said she plans to run for re-election — though it's awfully early to be talking about it.

"It's nice that there's attention now and people want to get involved," Jenkins-Cox said. "Is this the time for us to have that kind of conversation? I don't think so."

Jenkins-Cox, a former member of the city school board, ousted then-incumbent Councilman Willard Timmons in 2009 primary but came up short a year later when she and her daughter challenged Ingram and her daughter for their Albany County Democratic Committee seats.

Even so, Ingram was still replaced as ward leader after the 2010 primaries by Tony Brown, who came to power amid a push by 4th Ward Leader and former County Legislator Wanda Willingham to consolidate influence in the struggling (and now defunct) City of Albany Democratic Committee. But Ingram isn't the only one said to be eyeing Jenkins-Cox's seat.

Two people who move in those circles have told Insider that Sam Coleman, who ran last year for County Legislator in the new 3rd Legislative District, is at least kicking the idea around. But Coleman, who currently lives in the adjacent 12th Ward, said it's too early to say.

"Without seeing the lines, I don't know where I stand right now," he said. "If I'm in the fifth, sure there's a possibility that may happen."

All of this is complicated by the fact that it is a redistricting year, and the city's wards as they exist now will not necessarily be the wards the candidates run in next year. As lines move, incumbents and potential challengers could be pushed into new districts. Ingram herself happens to live very close to the 5th Ward's eastern boundary.

The hope of heading off allegations of impropriety is one reason the council — unlike the County Legislature — took the step of excluding its own members from the redistricting commission.